12 Days of Shopping: Teacher/Tutor Gifts (Day 5) GIVEAWAY

December 5, 2011

Gifts for Teachers and Tutors

We have a slew of tutors to remember every holiday season, both Capability:Mom and I. And by tutors, I use this as a catch-all to mean all the extracurricular teachers that do 1:1 or small classes with my kids for things like math, Spanish, Chinese, flute, karate, and the like. Some moms also include teachers for group classes such as gymnastics and I always feel like a schmuck when I notice them giving beautifully wrapped gifts to them because I have failed to include them on my own list. Ah well. It is a crazy, busy time of year! (Day 1 gifts work well for teachers of group classes: Granola and Granola Bars).

Capability:Mom is posting on teacher gifts, another conundrum that she will gracefully address as technically we’re not supposed to give teacher gifts at our school, but, of course, everyone still does.

As for tutors, they start to feel like family as some of ours have been with us for more than 6 years. As with all gifts, you want to change it up from time to time and therein lies the challenge. Although I am always one to buy the same gift per category (note how my mom and mom-in-law get identical presents), I try to match my tutor gifts to each recipient. Coffee versus Tea drinker? I have a coffee idea below and feel free to use the tea gift idea from the mom/mom-in-law post. The personalized gifts ideas (fancy return address stamper and stationery) also are great tutor gifts, though if you are reading about it now, it’s too late to get it in time for Christmas so that is for another day.

To glean more ideas, I asked my sister, a piano teacher in California. She said: music stationery, custom calendars, candles, musical ornaments, and gift certificates were popular items that she received.

Diptyque Candle $60

Moleskin Music Journal $16

With so many ideas to choose from, I’ve narrowed it down to 3 C’s: Coffee, Chocolate and Certificates (as in Gift):

COFFEE: My husband’s favorite coffee is Illy and they make a nice 3 can custom set for$45. We use the blue can for a regular coffee maker but we don’t have a coffee grinder so this can is already ground (Ground coffee medium roast).

CHOCOLATE: Lindt Truffles

You can’t go wrong with chocolate and Lindt has a nice individually wrapped Truffle selection that you can buy in bulk and package up nicely yourself. 120 pieces for $30. Put this is a nice glass candy dish purchased inexpensively at a discount store like Marshalls (or even recycle vases collected from flower deliveries) and this makes a nice gift.

I know that gift certificates may not seem like there is a lot of thought behind them, but I have to say that I got the most enthusiastic personal thank yous for a well matched up gift certificate to recipient.

Sephora: Some years the gift certificate comes with a mirrored compact which is a nice gift in and of itself. You know your audience, but anyone who likes make up, skin care or fragrance can find something here even at a price point of under $15.

iTunes: iTunes are a great choice for men. My art tutor is getting this and I think he’ll love it! I have noticed that this matches up well for anyone whose preferred mode of communication is texting.

Lunch at local bakery cafe: I often give a small gift certificate — enough for a nice lunch — to a tutor who might not know about this nice lunch option and it helps out my local fave bakery as well!

Whole Foods: I like to give this to tutors who are vegetarian or vegan. You can also get a nice lunch there!

If I have no idea what to get, my fall back is Starbucks, Barnes and Nobles, and Target. And honestly, there is no shame in buying them at the grocery store. No one can ever tell where you purchased it from!